I THINK OF JOEY EVERY DAY

But for his wife Linda and their five children Joey was first and foremost a hero as a husband and father.

This Friday marks 10 years since the death of one of Ballymoney's favourite sons on a racetrack in Estonia.

A small number of close friends and family will gather at Garryduff Presbyterian Church where the couple were married and later renewed their wedding vows for a special service in his memory.

It is also the church to which over 50,000 pilgrims travelled for the funeral of the 48-year-old in July 2000.

Speaking to the Times from the Garryduff Road home she shared with Joey for almost two decades, Linda (57) said she thinks of her late husband on a daily basis adding that her biggest regret is that he never got to see their six grandchildren.

"I have mixed emotions," said Linda, perched on her sofa beside a picture of the couple and one of Joey's iconic yellow helmets.

"It is hard to believe it has been 10 years.

"The service will bring everyone together who has supported us as last 10 years as a family.

"It is important to thank people who have been with us day by day.

"It hasn't been easy but we were fortunate to have been blessed with five good children who never gave us any bother or have done since.

"Joey is on my mind quite a bit, and always will be.

"But it is something a lot of people have to cope with in life. We are not the only ones."

The couple were childhood sweethearts meeting when Linda was 15 and Joey 16 at Killyrammer.

Linda says back then Joey was laid back and recalls the softly spoken lad being fanatical about bikes even then.

Joey started to make a name for himself in the bike world by racking up victories on the short circuit scene early in his career but he announced his arrival on the international stage by winning the Jubilee at the Isle of Man TT in 1977.

Several other high profile victories over the next couple of years prompted Honda representatives to approach Joey thus sparking an affinity between the two spanning two decades.

Joey was now a household name but despite his love for the bikes and the adulation he was receiving across the world, Linda said Joey's main focus remained on his wife and children.

"He never saw himself as a superstar, he didn't look at it that way," said Linda.

"He was always laid back.

"He was never any different, Joey was just Joey.

"He never bothered with the high life at all. Racing was just something we were all involved in, win or lose. As well as the sporting side of things it was a big part of the family. We knew many of the people at the racing so it was a great social thing too.

"Everyone associated with each other."

Despite his fearless performances on the track, Linda said Joey was often on edge before every race.

"He would have been nervous beforehand. He would leave at the last minute, just arrive at the pits and get straight onto the bike," she said.

"People always wondered why Joey was late but that was his intention."

With race meetings coming thick and fast Joey was heading off throughout Ireland, the UK and further afield on a weekly basis.

The downside to this for Joey was being unable to spend as much time with his kids as he would have liked - but he more than made up for it when he did have time away from the race track.

"He asked me to go with him quite a bit," said Linda.

"But I would never have left the wains for any length of time. They always came first.

"Of course it was different for the local races. The kids were always there and Julie was brought up in the paddock to watch her dad."

One of Linda's biggest regrets is that Joey didn't live to enjoy their six grandchildren.

"They would have been Joey's pride and joy, he would have idolised them," she said.

"Every second Joey had free was spent with his kids. He bought a boat and took them away on fishing trips or camping.

"We went away every year for a couple of weeks and I remember him taking the boys to Turkey one time. He was never one for sitting about, if he had time off he spent it with his family."

And it wasn't just his own kids Joey dedicated his time to. In 1996 he was rewarded with an OBE for his charity efforts in Romania after setting sail in a van to the impoverished country with clothes and toys for the deprived children there.

He made five trips to Romania in all, collecting donations from people in Ballymoney as well as local businesses which pitched in with various items.

Joey kept the trips away from the glare of the media and while deeply affected by what he saw in Romania, rarely discussed it when he returned home.

The 1996 gong came 10 years after he was bestowed an MBE and made it a hat-trick of royal appointments for Joey and Linda who also guested at a garden party in the presence of the Queen for Britain's World Champions.

Joey's fatal accident came on July 2 2000 in Estonia. He was aged 48. Having smashed records throughout his career and cemented his reputation as the greatest rider who ever lived Joey could have been forgiven for hanging up his helmet prior to the races in Estonia.

But his appetite for racing was insatiable and Linda said he never once mentioned retiring from the sport he adored.

"He never talked about retiring," she said.

"Joey was that type of person. If he was going to have retired he would just have done it, he wouldn't have discussed it.

"It wasn't for me to say either because if a rider is going to retire it has to be their decision.

"People assume these things but Joey was fitter in 2000 than he had been 10 years previously."

Linda received the life-shattering news of Joey's death in a phone call to her home on July 2. She had last seen her husband as she waved him off on his ill-fated trip following a family meal on Fathers Day.

"That was the lowest point of my life," she admitted.

The untimely death of the racing legend stunned not only the bike fraternity but sent shockwaves throughout Northern Ireland, the UK and across the world.

His funeral was attended by over 50,000 people - testament of the adulation for the modest Ballymoney man.

"As a family we received a lot of support and that was good," said Linda.

"People came from all over to pay their respects which was nice.

"People were very supportive and a lot of those people are still supporting us."

Linda said she didn't take any comfort from the fact Joey perished while taking part in a sport which he adored.

"A lot of time in these circumstances people say 'they died doing what they love'," she said.

"I know 100% Joey didn't want to die on a motorbike.

"Nobody wants to go to their sport and die doing it. People don't want to die doing something they love, they don't expect anything to happen."

With the Dunlop name synonymous with racing, it wouldn't have been a surprise to see Joey's sons Gary and Ricky follow in their illustrious father's footsteps.

Gary did venture into the sport for one season but - much to the relief of Linda - decided it wasn't for him.

"Gary did one season I think because he thought people expected him to do it," she said.

"He didn't really want to but he thought as Joey's son he should give it a go. But he realised it wasn't for him and to my delight to be honest he didn't take it further.

"I couldn't have coped with any of them racing."

Despite the daily reminders of Joey dotted throughout the town, Linda never considered leaving Ballymoney in the wake of Joey's death.

"Ballymoney is not a big town but it is our home and I love it," she said.

Earlier this year she visited Japan and stopped off at Honda's headquarters.

She was amazed by the regard in which Joey is still held in the land of the rising sun.

And last month she made the trip to the Isle of Man for the official opening of Braddan Bridge House on the Isle of Man, a facility for the disabled.

The property was constructed by the Joey Dunlop Foundation and acts as a lasting legacy to Joey on the island of which he is an adopted son.

"It was great to see it finally finished although there are a few wee bits and pieces to do yet," she said.

"I have been flying backwards and forwards for the past nine years. At times it has been one step forward and two back but it has been worth it.

"It is right on the course and is really, really great. It's a fitting tribute to Joey."

[email protected]